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Syrian swimmer hopes to represent refugees at Rio Olympics

Syrian swimmer Yusra Mardini who fled to Germany with her family and who is currently training with a local swimming club attends a joint press conference of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) in Berlin, Germany, Friday, March 18, 2016. The IOC is supporting refugee athletes who could potentially qualify for the Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro 2016. One of them is 17 year old Syrian swimmer Yusra Mardini. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)
Syrian swimmer Yusra Mardini who fled to Germany with her family and who is currently training with a local swimming club attends a joint press conference of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) in Berlin, Germany, Friday, March 18, 2016. The IOC is supporting refugee athletes who could potentially qualify for the Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro 2016. One of them is 17 year old Syrian swimmer Yusra Mardini. (AP Photo/Michael Sohn)

By Associated Press 1 min read

BERLIN (AP) – One year after swimming for her life in Greek coastal waters, Syrian refugee Yusra Mardini could be swimming at the Olympics.

The 18-year-old Mardini is hoping to be selected for a small team of refugees that will compete under the Olympic flag in Rio de Janeiro in August.

Yusra says: “I want refugees to be proud of me.”

Yusra fled Damascus with her older sister Sarah last August and survived a hazardous crossing on the Aegean Sea to reach Europe.

Now she trains at a pool built for the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. She is among 43 refugees from different countries in contention for the International Olympic Committee’s “Refugee Olympic Athletes” team.